Dan Rowan was a fighter pilot during World War II. When the war ended he went to Hollywood.
Rowan was working at a car dealership when he met comedy writer Dick Martin. The two became the comedy team Rowan & Martin. They toured night clubs and late night talk shows.
Soon, they had their own TV show called Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In. It started in 1968 and ran for 6 seasons.
The show’s catchphrase was “sock it to me.” This was said by one of the women in the cast before being doused with water or dropping through a trapdoor. Goldie Hawn and Lily Tomlin were among the cast.
An early episode had a short cameo from presidential candidate Richard Nixon.
Dan Rowan’s materials from Laugh-In are available at UW’s American Heritage Center.